The management of Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT-3) on Monday refiled the petition seeking the implementation of a fare increase.
In a rail advisory, Department of Transportation (DOTr) Undersecretary for Railways Cesar Chavez said the petition was filed before the DOTr’s Rail Regulatory Unit (RRU).
The said petition prayed for ₱2.29 increase in distance fare and ₱0.21 per kilometer for boarding fare.
Once the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) approves this, the maximum fare for end-to-end trips, SM North to Taft stations and vice versa, will rise to ₱34 from the current ₱28.
The minimum fare, meanwhile, will increase to ₱17 from the current ₱13.
The MRT-3 refiled the petition weeks after the LTFRB approved the petition hike filed by Light Rail Transit’s (LRT) Lines 1 and 2. The said hike will take effect by August.
Chavez assured that commuters using the service of LRT-1 and LRT-2 will be “far better and more efficient now.”
He noted that the last train fare adjustment in the two lines of LRT was eight years ago.
“The approval is not only necessary, beneficial, and practical for both the LRT operators and commuters, but also for the country as well,” the DOTr Undersecretary for Railways said.
It can be recalled that in February this year, the MRT-3 management filed a petition before the transportation department, but got rejected due to “infirmities in complying with the requirements and procedure.”
